Baby Kicks

Baby Sorenson is officially head down! Hopefully he will stay there but who knows. So I am supposed to officially count movements/kicks now at 29 weeks. My midwife gave me a sheet and I tried it out this morning. I guess the baby will cycle between sleep and play for 30 minutes each and I am supposed to feel movement every hour if I am paying attention closely.

I tried it out because she wants 10 kicks in 30 minutes. I document the time the 1st movement was felt and the time the 10th movement was felt. It took our dear baby boy 3 minutes flat to give 10 solid kicks. Yeah.... The way he has been kicking is hilarious. Spread eagle at the same time both feet are going at it. It reminds me of a kid doing a handstand and kicking his legs out. John thinks he is doing jump squats. Haha!

  

Tonight for Halloween John and I are going to be a zebra and a lion. Throw back from our second year of marriage because I don't want to come up with another costume this year! 

Better Together

Life it better when you are together. I love doing the simple things with the people I love!



I love it when John comes home from work and we just sit next to each other and chat. Or when we need to go somewhere and we sit next to each other in the car. I love just BEING with him and enjoying the pleasure of his company. Simplicity in time spent together is a beautiful thing. Sometimes I like to be creepy and just stare at him. Or maybe that's what quiet love really is. Being comfortable to stare without words and to be stared at without looking away.




Today Stephanie and I did some errands and it is so much fun to just be together doing the mundane things that we all need to do. Her two kiddos are so sweet and they make life hilarious whenever we hang out. She picked up her laundry, we went to Subterranean Coffee Boutique because they have an option of using almond milk, she ran into Sprouts while I hung out with her sweeties in the car, and finally we went to pick up a fire pit from her mom's place to use for Halloween. When we got back to her place she nursed her little one while her son tried to open her car door properly by putting the key in the key hole of the car. So cute! She felt my belly and was able to tell me the position of where our son is (as I suspected, his favorite spot, transverse with his back facing downward). My favorite part of our short day together is just being able to do life side by side. Great friends make great company, no matter what you do together! I am missing Danielle who is in New York visiting her sisters but this is a pic from a while ago for my birthday. This was the night I told Steph and Danielle I was pregnant!

Dinner tonight was a real winner! Paleo chicken nuggets!

Ingredients

coconut oil for "frying"
1 large egg
1/4 cup almond milk or water
1 cup almond flour
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp Cayenne pepper (optional)
2 large chicken breast, cut into  2x2 inch pieces 1/2 inch thick

Directions

1. Whisk egg and almond milk (or water) in medium sized bowl 2. Combine all dry ingredients in large bowl and mix well.
3. Dip chicken in whisked eggs.
4. At this point heat 1/4 cup coconut oil in large frying pan and preheat oven to 400 degrees
5. Coat/cover chicken in dry mixture and place in hot oil.  Allow both sides to brown (about 2 minutes each side).
6. Place browned chicken on a cookie sheet, make sure there is space between all pieces.
7. Put chicken in oven for 10-15 minutes, check to make sure they are cooked through. There will be a lot of water run-off from baking, you can let the chicken drip onto a few paper towels. 

Remove and serve with ketchup or BBQ sauce

Best Pizza Ever

Our birthing class got canceled last night because our instructor Nicole was at a birth today. She's a midwife and a little baby decided it was his day to make his entrance into our world! I am really excited because she will be at our birth as our Midwife Vickii's partner midwife. They always work in teams of two and it's going to be awesome to have our birthing instructor at our birth! Since class was canceled we jetted over to Sprouts to get ingredients for pizza dinner. This is the best "pizza" ever. Seriously. Can you just see the ooooo soooo yummy melt-in-your-mouth goodness?

How to make it might you ask? Is it gluten and dairy-free? WHY YES! I use Sprouts gluten-free Ivory Teft Tortillas as "crust" and Daiya "cheese" shreds. This soy-free, gluten-free, dairy-free cheese is amazing. It melts like cheese, tastes better than cheese, and most importantly it doesn't send my husband to the hospital (been there twice, done with that). Toppings are essential and since I can't do ham with nitrates I am so thankful Trader Joe's and Sprouts offer uncured meats free of nitrates! Mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, avocado, and tomatoes top it off. Mmmmm melted goodness.

I am really enjoying this weather change in San Diego. Its overcast and rained last night. It reminds me a little bit of the NorCal winters I grew up with. It's perfect cuddle-snuggle weather. It was hard to pull myself out of bed this morning to go to TRX at 8am but when I woke up and saw that John has already left for his 6:30am CrossFit workout I knew I didn't have any excuses. It is kind of nice to drive with a light drizzle and I am really glad I went to work out, I needed to do SOMETHING after that Saturday morning WOD. I forced myself to walk (BLAH) for 20 minutes on the treadmill and watched A Baby Story on TLC. The hospital the woman being featured delivered at must be pretty awesome because not only did her midwife let her labor in a tub, she was able to deliver her baby boy in the water! Hospitals are finally starting to catch on and allow water births, but most of them are on the east coast. We are planning on having all the home birth supplies to deliver in the water but we will see when D-Day gets here what I feel like doing. I took an amazing bath today after my workout and it did wonders for my joints and muscles. We shall see!

Things I love about fall/winter in San Diego:

1. I can be all bundled up and still wear flip-flops
2. The beach has good days still, even close to Christmas
3. Rain is a treat and I enjoy it instead of loathing it
4. No ice on my car in the morning
5. Most of all, my family comes to San Diego every year after Christmas for the Cru Christmas Conference and I get to see them all after Christmas with John's family!

I would love to start crafting for our son (outfits, blankets, hats, baby carries, ect) but I need to remember....

The Gift of a Nap

I had glorious plans to fold the laundry, clear out some things in the living room, finish washing the dishes from last night, and I had this smokin' hot baby back ribs recipe I wanted to try again with all those FREE hours in my day to let it cook to sweet, fall-off-the-bone perfection. My achiever strength was going to be so tickled and fulfilled. And then... I indulged in a 2 hour nap while John went to help a friend finish roofing his house. And it was amazing. SO much better than all those things I could have done. It is hard for me to be OK with resting but this pregnancy has taught me to listen to my body and let it take the lead. Naps are truly a gift and I think God smiles when he sees his children being as he created them: at perfect peace and without worry.

WHY was I so tired you might ask? Well yesterday was a bit full yet amazing. The CrossFit WOD was tough, and afterward John and I took it easy at home shoving our faces with leftovers and taking care of some things at home.

John was waiting in eager anticipation or his Reebok Crossfit Nano 3.0 shoes. These things were literally flying off the shelves and since I married a GIANT he had to wait every day for them to restock the gray/black size 14 at Reebok.com. John gets a 40% discount on all their products so it was a steal for the guy who has had the same pair of shoes for 2 years! I think the 6 hours or research he did on the shoes and all the neat tricks he told me about them made him even more excited than the typical average consumer who buys stuff. I started tuning out when he told me about how the sides of the shoes are reinforced because the biggest complains about the 2.0 version was that rope climbs tore up the sides of the shoes too easily. Of course the shoes came an hour after we left for Advocare business training.

Training was AWESOME. Best quote of the day came from Kyle McComb,

"Life is obligated to test your vision as soon as it is announced."

I love this because it is so true! How many times have you had a clear path, a clear direction, a clear vision of what you are called to do and to live out. And then the same day you share that special vision with a spouse, a friend, a mentor, or post it on facebook life throws you something to try to say, "Nope, that's foolish! You don't have time, energy, the schedule, the skills, the passion, or the perseverance to do THAT." Persistence is key in times when your vision is tested in life, and support from those who love and care about you goes a long way.


After training we went to have a little date night. We picked up Thai food and took it to the Fashion Valley theaters to buy our tickets then eat out in the courtyard. Last weekend we tried to watch Captain Phillips but it was sold out so we tried to plan ahead this time! This movie was great. It's based on a true story about the hijacking of an American Cargo ship by Somali pirates. I highly recommend it! The movie made me really think what it must be like to live in another country and to have such different daily worries and needs than we have in America. The movie depicts the pirates as unique characters who have a fierce determination to bring back money for their village so that the war lords overseeing them will leave them alone after they "pay up".

We went to bed past midnight and this morning went to the 11am Flood Church service. I love hearing Andy Kelly bring it!

I am really excited about out Birthing From Within class tonight. It is class 5 out of 6 and we are going to be talking about interventions and how to advocate for yourself. Our home work was to look up the benefits, risks, and alternatives to cesarean birth, external fetal monitors (belts), IV fluids, induction with Cervidil, Cytotec, and Pitocin, using Pitocin during labor, Epidural, breaking water during labor, breaking water to start labor, stripping the membranes, internal fetal monitors on the baby's scalp, episiotomy, forceps, and vacuum. Even though three of the couples in our group of 6 are going to be delivering our babies at home it was such a great exercise to be able to look up the information for myself and see what those who elect to have a hospital birth are faced with. And in the even that our Midwife transfers us to UCSD medical during labor I will already know the different interventions that will be offered to me.

Our instructor shared an amazing poem that makes me well up with tears every time I read it. I will share it for you all and let you know how our class goes in tomorrow's post!

Invitation to Birthing From Within Mothers
 
It doesn't interest me how many prenatal books you've read,
I want to know if you hear your child whisper to you
when you lie awake at night.

It doesn't interest me who you are
or where you came from,
I want to know if your authentic mother warrior will awaken
when you birth your baby with all that you have.

It doesn't interest me if you have a birth plan
or where you plan to give birth.
I want to know that you will meet your birth
with an open mind and open heart.
I want to know if you can fully embrace the path
you must journey
to birth yourself as a mother.

It doesn’t interest me if you birth in silence
or as a lioness roars.
I want to know if you are willing to do
whatever it takes to birth your baby,
regardless of how you look,
how you sound,
or what others may think.
I want to know if you are willing to journey
to your depths and through the unknown.

It doesn't interest me how many stitches you get,
I want to know how you are moving in your body.
I want to know if you can take each movement
of your achy dripping body
and know that it has done a marvelous, miraculous thing.

It doesn't matter to me how you feed your baby.
I want to know if you are willing
to nurture your baby
from the depths of your soul and with
unconditional love.

I want to know if in the dark of night,
you can raise your tired bones and weary spirit
and do what needs to be done to care for your children

I want to know if you are willing to give up
your judges and ideals of a perfect parent
and surrender to your heart
and belly
to love your baby until you ache.

(This work was compiled and edited by Juji Woodring with contributions from Alejandrina in AZ, Lia from South Africa, Alisa from Texas, Charlene, and Tamara D.)

Perfect Fall Feast + Crossfit WOD

Last night I cooked up some awesome ruby chicken, a favorite recipe my mom used to make when I was growing up. I modified it so it is gluten-free, dairy-free, and refined sugar-free. Goodness in a pan! I knew this winner had to be paired with some amazing veggies so I went with some roasted Brussels sprouts. I could eat these every day they are so scrumptious. I couldn't stop there, it wouldn't be a complete meal without a little pumpkin bread!

It was the perfect fuel meal to prepare for our CrossFit workout.  And let me tell you, this was a tough one. John is on the floor of our place "recovering" as I type. He is a beast! More pictures and WOD description after the recipes!

The trick to this recipe is bringing the sauce/glaze to a boil before it gets poured over the chicken. The cranberries, orange juice, onion, and cinnamon smell amazing together and its tempting to skip the chicken and eat it like a soup! This will instantly make your house smell like fall wintry warm goodness.The agave is optional if you are on the cleanse or the 24 Day Challenge, or if you ran out of agave (Costco has massive bottles of raw agave, no excuses!).

Breading and browning the chicken is easy when you use an almond flour/coconut flour base and brown it in coconut oil. It will start to smell nutty and fragrant. It reminds me of the batter i use to make baked "fish sticks" minus the step where you dip the fish in egg. The chicken needs to be lightly browned so a little almond/coconut flour goes a long way! This is some high-protein batter and with none of the gluten! I might try to cook chicken this way, I've only used the technique to brown it then bake it!

The smell when this stuff comes out of the oven is AMAZING. Waiting for it to cool is the hard part. MMmmm.

Margee's Ruby Chicken 

3lbs chicken (3 hand-sized breasts)
½  cup almond flour
½ cup coconut flour
2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
1 cup orange juice
1 red onion, chopped
¼ cup agave
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
sea salt to taste
coconut oil for browning chicken

Combine cranberries, orange juice, chopped onion, cinnamon, and ginger in a sauce pan. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Combine the almond flour and coconut flour in a bowl and set aside. Wash and cut up your chicken breast into roughly 3x3 inch pieces about ½ an inch thick. At this point go ahead and preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Dip the chicken into the flour mixture, coating on both sides. Drop 1 teaspoon of coconut oil into a skillet and brown the chicken (about 1-2 minutes per side) on medium-high heat. You might have to do a few batches. Place the browned chicken in a 10x15 oblong glass pan and pour the cranberry mixture evenly over the chicken. Bake for 40-50 minutes at 350 degrees. Salt to taste and serve with roasted brussels sprouts

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Brussels sprouts (1-2 lbs)
Coconut oil spray or olive oil
Sea Salt

Preheat oven to 350. Cut the brussels sprouts length-wise. Line a baking pan with tin-foil and spray with coconut oil or spread olive oil over the bottom. Lay the brussels sprouts flat side down, round side up. Spray the tops with more coconut oil or brush with olive oil. Grind sea salt over the brussels sprouts. Put in the oven and roast for 30 minutes at 350. They will be "done" when you pull one up and it is browned on the bottom and when you pierce it it is tender. If they are not "done" place back in the oven for an additional 5 minutes.

Pumpkin Bread

1 cup almond meal/flour
¼ cup coconut flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
4 eggs
¼ cup agave or honey
1 ¼ cup pumpkin puree
1 tablespoon melted coconut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 375. Whisk dry ingredients (first 6) to break up any almond flour or coconut flour clumps. Beat the eggs in a separate bowl and add into the dry mixture. Add wet remaining ingredients; pumpkin, agave, melted coconut oil, and vanilla. Beat slowly until just combined. Don't over blend or the bread will turn out will be dense and flat. Grease a 8x9 inch square pan or a circular cake pan with coconut oil (or you can use cooking spray). Bake at 375 degrees for about 40 minutes. 

CrossFit workout

 

WOD: “HELEN meets GRACE”

 

In Teams of 2, Complete For Time:

3 Rounds:

400m Run

21 Kettlebell Swings (53/35)

12 Pull-ups

Then Complete:30 Clean & Jerks (135/93) 

* One partner works at a time; split reps as you see fit

* Both partners must run 400m together

* One kettlebell and one bar per team, unless on a scaled or male/female team

 

How the coaches modified it for me:  

*Run at a pace you will be able to have a conversation with John

*No modification for Kettlebells (I did 35lbs)

*No kipping pull-ups, use band for assisted pull-ups

*For Clean and Jerks use 11lb bar with 8.5lb bumpers (28lbs total). Because of my belly I use a lot less weight because the movement is altered. When I don't pull up straight to a clean, the bar is further away from my body and puts more stress in my back. 

Watching John bust out some swings

Got the Clean and Jerks down!

Pregancy Updates

After a long hiatus I have decided to start blogging again. With our little baby boy on the way and so many people wanting updates and pictures I think this is a great way to stay connected! I will hopefully post a lot of my gluten-free/dairy-free/refined-sugar free (phew!) recipes to share since I have been getting a lot of requests to share my kitchen creations. For the next week I am committing to posting everyday, so check back for new posts!

I will start off with 5 things I have done/enjoyed during my pregnancy to help me get ready for the little man's arrival! 28 weeks so far and I can't wait to meet him!

Workouts
I have been doing a lot of TRX suspension training to build muscle and maintain good heart health. The YMCA offers TRX so I pull myself out of bed and go to their 8am classes. I love the workouts because EVERYTHING involves a little bit of core for stability and I feel like I am getting some awesome abs even though I'm pregnant and can't do normal sit-ups. I've been doing Hatha yoga once a week with a friend and feel amazing stretching everything out and working on balance (which disappeared when my belly emerged). Swimming is another staple and I usually try to do at least a 600 after the TRX classes. I think my favorite part of my week might be Saturday morning CrossFit though! I get to workout with my incredibly handsome husband and bust out my moves in the box. The coaches modify the tough stuff but for the most part I can keep up with the other ladies and not feel like the weak link when we do team challenges. My LEAST favorite thing is walking. I truly dislike it but have been trying to make myself do it at the gym for 20 minutes at least. Blah, I just think its boring but I know its good for preparing me for birth and getting my dear son in the right position.

Food/Nutrition
I feel amazing for having gained a healthy 20+lbs already (I like to think at least 5 of that is muscle from TRX, hehe). I love cooking and have continued with mostly paleo meals to help me and my baby out. I juiced a lot in the beginning to ward off morning sickness and only felt nauseous the two days I didn't do it! I read a blog about it and gave it a shot, it worked for me! I have heard if you start doing a lot of green juice it will make you MORE sick as your body brings itself back into balance, so persist! I have been loving my favorite Advocare products like catalyst and meal shakes to help me hold onto my muscle and get in enough protein. I would be a mess without Spark so that's helped ward off the "pregnancy brain" for the most part. After lots of research I made the decision to ONLY take Advocare products that would replace a prenatal. I figured I don't eat all my food for the day in one sitting, why would I take my vitamins all at once? The one thing I can't get enough of this pregnancy is WATER. I am endlessly parched and guzzle SOOOOoo much water! I have been craving a lot of fruit and it is a bad day if I run out. I'm sad summer fruit is disappearing, I loved those peaches!

Deals
John and I made the parenting decision not to buy our kid everything on the planet. John read an awesome book called It's Your kid, not a Gerbil by Dr. Kevin Leman. I am still reading it but the conversations we have had are amazing! We really value creating contentment within our family. In TOTAL I have spent $50 on our little boy. I bought a bunch of onsies and newborn outfits from a woman on craigslist for $20 that would have cost near $100 new! A friend gave me some clothes her 3 month son outgrew and wore once or twice. I got a free nursing cover, imitation-bobby, and bamboobies nursing pads that I only had to pay for shipping to receive! Our BOB stroller is a gift from John's parents and we are picking it up tonight at REI during our date night (hello yogurtland treat!). Our office is going to become a combo nursery/office so we bought an awesome cubbie/bookshelf off craigslist for $50 (usually $200 new) to put office supplies and a few baby clothes. We were on the fence about a crib and decided to NOT get one until he needs it (6 months or so?). Changing tables I have heard never get used to we have a changing pad and cover John's parents couldn't resist buying (thank goodness) that is going to be placed on top of our file cabinet with our cloth diapers going under it in the little cubbies. All in all I am pretty proud that I've saved money and space!

Spinning babies
I am obsessed with the Spinning Babies website and blog. Its all about optimal fetal positioning and exercises I can do do help balance my pelvis, create room for my baby, and help him get into the right position for a smooth birth. John helps with the partner exercises and we have lots of laughs when something doesn't quite workout the way they described on the website. Like when I almost fall off the bed. And when I ask John to "shake the apple tree" (look it up) and something slips out that wasn't supposed to. My friend Stephanie told me about it when she was pregnant, my midwife insisted I do the daily exercises, AND our birthing instructor taught a segment of class on how to use the techniques before and during labor. SO i decided those who have gone before me are wiser than I am. I love it! I am obsessed!

Taking it easy
All in all taking it easy has been so refreshing! I try to walk the shopping cart to the car instead of loading 10 bags across my arms. I have taken a few naps. Gone to bed earlier. Let John do the dishes (like every night he can he insists). Putting my feet up and not feeling guilty. I love pausing to feel my son move and to think about all the ways God is making him into the man he will one day become. I may have showered less, done less housework, and taken more breaks, but it has been so worth it.